Does it stay with you?
by lost soul's keeper
Summary: Becky Albright is sent to meet Alice Pleasance for information for a case after the Mad Hatter Attacks her. However the meeting doesn't go end as planned and Becky is left with a question that she isn't sure she wants answered.


A/n: Yes I am hopping aboard the Crane/Albright bandwagon and making a stand for the Jervis/Alice pairing as well. YOU CAN'T STOP TRUE LOVE!

Disclaimer: None of the characters of Batman belongs to me. Becky Albright, Jervis Tetch and Jonathan Crane are property of DC comics. The character of Alice Pleasance is from WB cartoon Batman the animated series and the most I am doing with her is taking the liberty of changing her back story.

Note: This story takes place after another story of mine 'Unexpected Changes' Where Alice is a new medical intern at Arkham. Hope you all have a chance to read it.

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Becky Albright was not happy.

She didn't know why she was here. Well she knew the reason but she didn't know why SHE had been chosen for this particular case.

She mentally went over the facts again for this case.

One: The young woman's name was Alice Pleasance.

Two: She had been interning as a nurse at Arkham.

Three: She had caught the eye of the Mad Hatter.

That was where the facts stopped. After that there was several different points differnt sides.

The police talked about how traumatized Ms Pleasance was and how it was clear that the Mad Hatter had harmed her.

But the medical reports were saying there was no evidence of physical abuse or sexual activity.

Now her last task of the evening was to get the story from Alice Pleasance herself and report back to the office in the morning so a proper case could be made.

She entered the interrogation room and say the 'victim' in the chair. She was a blond Caucasian young woman, dressed in an odd dress that after a minute Becky recognized it as a costume of Alice from the book 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'. "Ms. Pleasance?" She asked. The blond looked up her light blue eyes confused and upset.

"My name is Rebecca Albright. I need to speak to you about tonight" The answer shocked her.

"No. "

Rebecca stared at her. "Ms. Pleasance I know your upset and confused but…." Again she was cut off

"I know what you want and I'm not going to say what people want to hear. He didn't' hurt me. I'm not gong to say he did."

Becky sighed "I don't know what happened. That's why I hear. I need to know what happened."

"So you can make you 'case?" was the reply.

There was a few minutes of silence then Alice sighed. "I'm sorry Ms. Albright . I just…..People haven't really been listing to me is all." She said apologetically.

Becky nodded. "I'm sorry for that but I'll listin..Tell me anything you want to."

Alice took a deep breath and spoke. "I met him when I started my internship at Arkham. He seemed nice, The guards often seemed to be rather hard on him so I had to patch him up a lot. We became, Well I KNOW people won't believe this but we became friends."

Becky's hand paused in writing at that, Alice noticed and gave her a wry smile. "I knew you wouldn't believe that. I don't blame you but it's the truth. We did becomes friends of a sort. " She said "We had nice long talks, I was the only one he let give him his medicine. He always knew some poem or other to make me smile when I was having a bad day and I was the one he told all his troubles too." She paused as if reflecting and then added "So if we weren't friends then I'd like to know what else we could have been."

Becky was silent writing notes as Alice continued to describe what happened. How she had been transferred to another hospital for the remainder of her internship 'for her own safety' according to because of how interested Jervis was getting in her. Becky noted she kept calling the Mad Hatter Jervis but said nothing. She went on to listen as Alice described hearing about his breakout and how he broke into her apartment and kidnapped her. She would be honest and say he WAS guilty of those things. After that things got a little fuzzy. She didn't' remember much at all. But she KNEW that Jervis hadn't done anything inappropiate with her. She remember being given the dress she now wore and being left alone to change, she had fuzzy memories of being lead to the tea party table and talked to so gently, so apologetically. Most of all she remembered him saying 'Believe me my dear I didn't want it this way."

After she had finished, she stared at the table silently. Becky took a deep breath and put ups her notebook. "That will be all then Ms. Pleasance I'll inform Commissioner Gordon that You can be escorted home now." She said standing. Alice suddenly spoke "You were the focus of a rouge too weren't you?" Becky froze but then nodded "Yes. I testified against the scarecrow and he tried to break me yes." She answered in a slightly more curt tone then she meant too. Alice tilted her head curiously "Do you ever stop thinking about it?" she asked. Becky looked at her then turned to leave. "I'll have the commissioner get you an escort home." She repeated before hurrying from the room.

She did get her an escort. Then she went home, put her TV dinner in the oven and sat down to write up her report.

She ate her dinner and settled down to watch TV but then stopped as the question that had been circling in her mind suddenly rose u again and she couldn't ignore it this time.

'_**Do you ever stop thinking about it?'**_ Alice's question rose in her mind and she went to her room and dug her old bag out of the back of her closet and took out a certain bottle.

A certain spray bottle.

Her mind went back to that meeting on the rooftop. The fleeing from the scarecrow, The being cornered and having the costume thrust at her along with the offer. Her refusal and his confusion and rage. The scythe and the batman stepping in. Gathering her thing. Then her memory fast-forward to a few weeks ago.

Being cornered in an alley by a mugger, Digging in her back for her pepper spray.

She pushed that memory away and went back to enjoy some TV for a bit.

She didn't want to think about the Scarecrow. Or the fact at that she had accidentally picked up a bottle of his fear gas on the roof when she was gathering her things after batman tackled him.

But what she REALLY didn't want to think of was why the once full bottle of gas was missing a bit now.

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A/n" Well? Like it? Hate it? Have yet to form an opinion? Well tell me ALL about it in a review.


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